By Judy Torel
Until recently, seniors and exercise were thought of as mutually exclusive terms. Recent evidence indicates that starting an exercise program can greatly benefit the health and quality of life for seniors of all ages and fitness levels. The benefits do not only enhance the physical body, but mental health as well.
What are the physical and mental health issues specific to seniors that exercise can help improve? What are the types of exercises from which seniors can most benefit? Where in the Capital District are there organized senior exercise programs? Read on!
Balance
Studies have shown that as we age and become less active we tend to develop issues with balance. Falling is a direct result of the loss of the ability to balance and right oneself from weight shifts such as stepping down off a street curb. Falls can lead to broken hips and other injuries that result in disability and significant loss of autonomy in the senior population. There are a significant number of premature deaths among seniors that are the result of complications from falling.
Exercises that target balance can function as a preventative remedy against increased risk of falling. Start by standing on the floor, and practice standing on one leg for 15 seconds before switching weight onto the opposite leg for 15 seconds.
Once a senior has mastered this skill on the floor the exercise can be performed on any of the newer pieces of equipment in the fitness industry designed to create unstable surfaces. For instance, the Reebok Core Board is similar to a step, except that it’s unstable and can rock side to side and forward and back. A senior can practice standing on one leg while on the Core Board. This adds another element of instability to the exercise and further increases the ability to balance oneself. Other unstable surfaces that can be used for balance work include half foam rollers, the BOSU, and wobble boards.
Flexibility
Have you ever seen a senior who can no longer take a stride when walking, but who must resort to a shuffle? This is a common gaiting issue in seniors. Most observers attribute this shuffling gait with a lack of strength when in reality it’s the result of a decrease in flexibility, which makes it difficult to take a complete stride when walking.
A decrease in flexibility is very common in seniors and results in anything from a slight limitation to complete lack of independence. Flexibility can easily be maintained and enhanced with very simple exercises. Simply moving the joints through their complete range of motion will help seniors prevent the limited movement patterns. This can be done by flexing and bending the wrists, lifting and lowering the arms both forward and back and out to the sides and back into the body, rounding and arching the spine, lifting and lowering the leg in the hip joint, bending and straightening the knee, and flexing and pointing the foot.
Once a senior has mastered these movement patterns the next step in flexibility would be participating in a Kripalu yoga class for beginners or using a beginner yoga video.
Strength
As we get older, we lose approximately 10 percent of our lean mass per decade. This means that unless a senior is actively performing some type of strengthening exercises they have lost significant muscle mass.
Loss of muscle mass has several negative results for seniors. It can lead to less physical autonomy and a decrease in metabolism. It can also create the internal environment for the development of Type 2 diabetes and can increase the risk for osteoporosis or low bone density.
Strength exercises involve adding weight to a joint movement. For instance, a bicep curl can be done by holding a 1-pound can of vegetables and bending and straightening the elbow. Or, perform a military press by holding the cans over your shoulders and pushing both arms up to the ceiling. Another strengthening exercise requires sitting on the edge of a chair and straightening and bending the knee with an ankle weight on.
Once a senior is able to add 1-2 pounds of additional resistance to the basic movement patterns of the body, it’s time to find a gym or weight training center. Formal fitness centers have machines that allow the senior to use heavier overloads and to perform overload exercises that are not possible with just the body at home.
Endurance
Diabetes, hypertension, colon cancer, stroke and obesity are all linked to the senior population. Endurance exercises that increase the respiratory rate and the heart rate over a sustained period of time have been demonstrated to reduce the risk of these diseases. These include brisk walking, cycling, walking the dog, recumbant bikes and dancing. These exercises also help reduce and alleviate depression, which can be high among seniors.
Start with small intervals of sustained movement. For instance, walk for a minute and then take a short rest and begin to walk again for another minute until you have built up to a sustained 20-minute endurance workout. Next, start to add higher levels of intensity. For instance, while riding the recumbant bike, take note of the resistance level and the RPMs while you are building up to 20 minutes sustained. Then increase the resistance by one level until you can sustain the higher resistance for 20 minutes.
The adage, “Better late than never” certainly holds true when it comes to your health. It’s never to late for seniors to take charge of their bodies and ease their way into a safe fitness routine.
Judy Torel is a therapist/personal trainer with a Master’s degree in psychology. She is certified through the American College of Sports Medicine as a fitness trainer and works out of Judy Torel’s Sweat Shop Exercise Studio and Planet Fitness. She can be reached at JTOREL2263@yahoo.com.